Once again, panel takes no action on redistricting

Thursday

Apr 14, 2016 at 12:01 AMApr 15, 2016 at 10:25 AM

A panel of the Ohio Constitutional Modernization Commission met again Thursday to consider recommending how to alter the congressional redistricting process, which in its current form allows for rampant partisan gerrymandering.

Jim Siegel, The Columbus Dispatch

A panel of the Ohio Constitutional Modernization Commission met again Thursday to consider recommending how to alter the congressional redistricting process, which in its current form allows for rampant partisan gerrymandering.

But, in what has become a familiar scene for redistricting reform supporters, the panel again decided not to take action on recommending changes to the process for the legislature to consider.

The committee meets again on May 12. Fred Mills, chairman of the panel, said redistricting will be on the agenda and a vote will be scheduled.

“Whether or not we’ll actually take a vote is another thing,” he said.

The redistricting issue was pulled from the Legislative Branch and Executive Branch Committee in February and placed into a four-person subcommittee, which was supposed to have a recommendation ready within six weeks. That was 10 weeks ago.

The plan was studied further by a working group of the subcommittee. Meanwhile, Republican legislative leaders have expressed mild-at-best interest in changing the redistricting process.

“I do believe that the people that are part of that working group are doing the best they can to come up with solutions they think work,” said Catherine Turcer, a policy analysis for Common Cause Ohio and longtime advocate for redistricting reform. “The problem is, we need them to focus on voters and not partisan interests.”

While many members are working in good faith, Turcer said, “they started working on congressional redistricting reform in July 2013. We’re coming up on three years. At some point you just have to make a choice.”

Reform supporters know that the closer the calendar gets to 2021, when lines are drawn again, the tougher it will be to convince lawmakers to change the process.

The Legislature does not have to wait for the commission to act.

In his State of the State speech last week, Gov. John Kasich called on lawmakers to pass congressional redistricting reform, arguing that “ideas and merits should be what wins elections, not gerrymandering.”

“When pure politics is what drives these kinds of decisions, the result is polarization and division,” Kasich said. “I think we've had enough of that.”

Former Republican Govs. George Voinovich and Bob Taft, who sits on the modernization panel looking into the issue, have publicly supported altering the map-drawing process.

Using sophisticated software and detailed voter data, party leaders can draw precise congressional districts to ensure maximum benefit, both in terms of number of seats held and fewest competitive races.

Under the current map, Republicans control 12 of 16 seats and competitive general election races have been almost non-existent.

Republican legislative leaders have resisted calls to change the process for drawing congressional districts. Former U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, R-West Chester, opposed changing the process in 2015 as lawmakers approved changes to legislative redistricting, which voters approved overwhelmingly.

Sen. Charleta B. Tavares, D-Columbus, said issues such as splitting communities and counties are still being discussed. Mills said it’s an ongoing process.

“The senator and I remain optimistic that we can get there,” he said. “But we need to have some more meetings and more discussions.”